June 20

Line after line in today’s Gospel grabbed my attention. First, I heard “Let us cross to the other side.” This struck me as an invitation to open myself up to people on the “other side” - of town, of the aisle, of the world. I believe we are living through an historical period that asks us to welcome “the other,” to accept what we thought was foreign, to expand our hearts.
That is not an easy thing to do. In fact, in my experience, such crossing overs always entail storms. Whenever such changes occur, there are bound to be “violent squalls” - on a personal level, a group level, a spiritual level. “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” As we try to deal with sea-level changes, some of which appear quite ominous, it can seem God isn’t being extremely helpful. Couldn’t God make “the other” kinder, more reasonable? Couldn’t others see things my way - or at least acknowledge that my way of seeing makes some sense? Couldn’t God do something! It seems to me the storms around us are getting out of hand. I too want God to wake up and rescue us.
There is one line that offers some hope - “Quiet! Be still!” Maybe Jesus isn’t talking to the sea, but to me. Perhaps the Gospel is suggesting I need to take a few deep breathes, invite God to calm the fears that are whipping up such fierce winds in me. Perhaps the One who knows about crossings and crosses is trying to throw me a line.